The most common questions we get from our clients are regarding the ‘why’ of social media…and most often, on blogging. Blogs are the largest time commitments and therefore bring the most questions. We have a variety of answers, depending on the industry, but there are a few common answers that all our clients need to know.

You need a blog for many reasons; the most important is a place to start building your business. Your blog is the center of your social media tools; you will use the content that you share here to promote through Twitter and Facebook. In addition, your blog is the largest branding tool that you have on the web. Because the site is all your own, you control the content and the participation. It is also a great way to start building your networking lists, the people whom may be potential clients. You will be able to get to know your readers through comments, will have access to their email addresses and can start to gain trust in the community. It is slower pace than either Facebook or Twitter which allows you more time to develop the relationships in your own way.

The second reason you have a blog is to develop your online brand. The blog is all yours, your style, your content, your experiences. The blog should have a theme, whether it is all about your business or a combination of business and personal, your readers need to know what to expect. By creating a main goal for the site, it will be easier to develop content and stay on theme. Even if you want to keep this as a business blog only, you still need to be honest with yourself. If you struggle with certain areas, do not claim to be perfect at them. On the same token, if you are going to include some of your personal side, make sure that you don’t reveal too much. It should never be more than you want strangers to know about you. All of these details put together will create a picture of you, that others can see and will help you to build a stronger network. People connect with other people like them, and giving them a glimpse of you will help them to determine whether you fit what they need.

Finally, your blog is an educational channel for your past client, future clients and colleagues. Just like this blog post is an educational tool for our readers, this could also help someone interested in working with us to learn more about our services. Rather than answering the same questions to multiple people, you can write a blog post about it and then send it out to the entire group. It is an effective way to share thoughts and ideas and allows the readers to participate in the posts as well. They can contribute more content in their comments, or ask questions for you to answer in the future. The bottom line is to open a communication channel between you, your clients and your potential clients.

What other reasons do you have for starting your blog? Or what questions do you have about blogging?